There was a room, created by scientists, that was completely silent. Not just quiet. Silent. Specifically designed to absorb sound instead of bouncing it back. The only sounds you can hear is your heart beating, the blood rushing through your veins, your lungs filling with stifled air. Noises your mind usually ignores. But it would seem that our minds cannot handle such quiet. Within a half an hour, you will begin to hallucinate. Your mind will create sounds, images, anything to distract you from the silence. No one can last even an hour in such a room.
Victor often wondered at this. What happen in our history, in the evolution of our species, that silence was not tolerated by our own minds? That our minds would drive us mad, rather than sit in absolute silence. What darkness hid in our pasts to evoke such a reaction?
Victor felt he might be coming close to the answer in his current cell. Not that it was silent. The lights above him made a comforting buzzing noise. There was often the sound of footsteps in the hallway beyond his door. Occasionally someone would open the slot and push food through. So far, no one had attempted to talk to him. They were following his rules. He could even feel the slight hum of magic in the air. The sound kept him grounded for the first few days. He was safe in here. He was safe from them.
No. No, that wasn't right. It was the other way around. They were safe from him. His thoughts had become increasingly difficult to pin down. He told himself it was the isolation. That solitude often invoked strange thoughts. But that wasn't it. He could feel it in his chest now. The slight burning. It was not just localized to his heart anymore. Half of his chest felt cold to the touch. Felt dead.
He had tried to keep his mind occupied. He recited pi as far as he could. He reread books he had memorized years ago. They hadn't allowed him any actual books. Nothing he could use to escape. He could have found a way to use the spine of the book to…he tried not to think on ways he could escape. But every day his efforts felt more and more futile. He couldn't start thinking about a book he read on the human eye before he was creating ways to experiment on eyes. Ones often still attached to their living hosts.
That was another thing he noticed. He wasn't thinking of them as people or friends or allies any more. They were hosts. Specimens.
Test Subjects.
He shouldn't be allowed out of this cell. He shouldn't want to get out. He should be stronger than this.
He didn't remember when he started counting the steps he heard outside. Searching his memory for every time he had heard someone walk up behind him. Started to figure out who was bringing him his meals. He recognized Emma's steps. He heard her stop in front of his door. Surely the savior had better things to do than deliver meals to prisoners. Surely she wouldn't stoop to coming down here if she didn't think he was a threat.
If she didn't consider him an enemy.
She lifted the small door and began to slide his tray through.
"Does it bother you that Regina killed Graham?"
The tray stopped halfway through the slot. He should stop. He should be able to fight the darkness in him by now. He had spent his entire life fighting that side of himself. He should be stronger than some witch's spell.
"A heart attack. I did the autopsy myself. But looking back on it now...It all seems so obvious. Why do you think she did it? What point did it serve in her plans? Do you think Graham would forgive you for betraying him? For letting his murderer get away? Not just get away, but be a welcomed guest at your dinner table?"
The tray clattered to the ground. The slot slammed shut. Victor felt a smile creep onto his face. He didn't try to fight it. Why should he? This is what they all expected of him, why they feared him. They thought they could keep him locked in here? Thought he was weak? He knew how to get out of here. It would just require a little patience.
A town's doctor was privy to all sorts of secrets. Dead men couldn't hide the truth from him.
He didn't recognize the steps of the person who came next, but they were light. Lighter than Emma's. So a woman. Victor mentally went through all of the women in town in his mind. Any who would match his requirements. It wasn't just her steps though, it was the way they scraped the ground, like a ballerina. Someone unused to trudging through life.
One of the fairies then. But which one? Mother Superior? No, these steps didn't have her familiar sound of confidence. It could be any of them...except Emma or David would only send someone they trust. Someone they thought could take care of themselves should Victor attempt something.
Tinkerbell.
Victor smiled. Perfect. They had only met in passing, and despite the warnings of the others, she might be willing to listen to him.
The tray was pushed through quickly. Victor had only a few seconds.
"Please. Tell Emma I'm sorry. I...I don't know why I said what I did. I just...please. Just...just tell me if anyone else is hurt. I just want to know what's going on."
Not bad. Just the right amount of pleading and desperation. He didn't hear her say anything in response. What he did hear was one of his guards make a hushing noise. She had been about to respond.
He spent the next few days in the same way. Making sure he only spoke to Tinkerbell. Made sure the guards outside his door weren't the same ones each time. It was clever of him to make Emma switch them out so often. They wouldn't know how often Victor was attempting to talk. How he was attempting to glean information. He figured a few more days and he would have her.
Apparently fate was on his side, two days later the power went out. His silent existence was now paired with complete darkness. They had given him a room without windows. He couldn't see anything. And no one else could see what was happening inside the room. He couldn't just start screaming help. They would be suspicious of that. So he sat in the darkness until he heard the familiar sound of footsteps.
He threw himself into the door. He put a hand over his mouth and made muffled sounds. Loud enough that the guards outside could hear it.
"Doctor Whale, are you alright?"
A loud kick to the door, another muffled yell, and he could hear them arguing amongst themselves.
"They said never to...no matter what."
"They also said people had been trying to kill him. What if whatever it is, has come back to finish the job? We're supposed to protect..."
"Oh for goodness sake, open the door! He needs help." The fairy could be quite forceful when she wanted to be. An amateur would hide in the darkness and wait for the guards to enter. Then attack. But that was a foolish plan, too many variables to consider. Victor wasn't used to using his fist to get what he wanted. His mind was his greatest asset. He would never be so careless as to let his emotions guide his actions.
Compassion was always the mark of a fool.
As soon as the door opened, Victor threw himself backwards. His shoulders slamming into the hallway wall opposite of his cell's door. He had given the appearance that he had been flung from the room. He slid to the ground. The hallway was bathed in the red glow of the emergency lights.
"Doctor..."
"Be careful...it's..."
He pointed back at the darkened room. He glanced to the door at the end of the hall. The guard couldn't push the emergency lockdown button if the power was out. The two men turned their backs to him, facing the darkened cell. Tinkerbell moved to kneel beside him. He grabbed the knife at her belt and pushed her away. Two quick surgical stabs to the legs of the guards and they were on their knees. He grabbed the guns at their belts then he pushed both of them into the room and slammed the door. Tinkerbell had regained her feet during his scuffle with the guards and was now pointing another blade at him.
Victor smiled.
"There's no need for that my dear."
"Don't come any closer Doctor. I don't want to stab you. But I will if I have to."
Victor smiled at her. He raised one of the weapons and pulled the trigger.
He looked at Tinkerbell writhing on the ground then at the weapon in his hand. A taser then, not a gun. Oh well. He threw the used taser to the ground and stuffed the other in his belt. He grabbed the fairy's arm and dragged her towards the door at the end of the hall. He could see the third guard behind it, clearly torn about what to do. He had a taser in his hands as well. How sentimental these people could be. Thinking about his safety while guarding him.
"Doctor, please don't..."
Victor pulled Tinkerbell to her feet. His hand wrapped around her throat. One of her blades in his hands.
"Open the door, or I start peeling the skin off of her face." Barbaric, of course. But sometimes such things were necessary for progress. And these fools were standing in his way.
The man hesitated. Victor made a quick clean cut to her face. She twitched in his arms.
"Alright. Alright. Stop."
This was too easy. Victor was a little disgusted at how easy. On his world, the guards never would have opened the door. They would have let the girl be flayed alive. His people were much stronger than these imbeciles.
The door clicked open and Victor tased the man before he could get any ideas in his head. Not highly likely but still.
He still needed to get past the magical barrier around the floor. That wouldn't be too difficult. He knew there was a mental component to keeping such a barrier in place. And Regina might find her attentions...divided here soon.
He should slit Tinkerbell's throat. If the fairy recovered she might find a way to stop him. To warn the others. He should kill her and the guard and walk out. He put the blade to her neck...
His hands were shaking.
His hands never shook.
A surgeon couldn't have shaking hands. His research would be compromised. His procedures ruined. He removed the blade from her neck.
The shaking stopped.
He moved it towards her again, and it returned.
Interesting.
He would have to take the time to investigate this anomaly at a later time. Perhaps when he was not in the middle of an escape.
He dropped her to the ground and headed towards the supply room. Regina had been foolish to encompass almost the entire floor. He had access to so much down here.
So many glorious chemicals.
People truly underestimated the power of cleaning supplies. So easily obtained, so easy to fashion a bomb or two. It wouldn't do to burn down the entire hospital of course. He couldn't risk destroying all the equipment upstairs, he might need some of the machines for his experiments. The fire alarm was not connected to the main power, it would still sound regardless. He quickly got to work mixing the chemicals together, making sure they were at the right temperature. The right pressure.
He placed one near the stairwell and one near the outer wall of the hospital. On the other side of the wall was an alley that connected to the main street. One of the first things he had done when he had gotten his memories back was to figure out all the best escape routes. Not just out of the hospital, but out of his apartment, out of town hall, out of the Sheriff's Office. Anywhere he might find himself one day needing to flee quickly.
He soaked a rag in a different chemical concoction and then pulled the fire alarm. He lit the rag and placed it near the air vents. They might assume this was a trap, assume that he was down here waiting for them. Or they might come charging in. Secure in the knowledge that a man without magic couldn't possibly be a match for Regina or Rumpelstiltskin.
Fools.
Death was no match for him. Did they really think that a few self-righteous magic users could hope to contain him? All they had, all their power, came from objects. A dagger. A spell book. Trinkets. His power came from his own mind. His power was limitless.
The chemical rag caused a thick black smoke to quickly fill the hall. The smoke would disorient them, keep them from seeing his concealed bombs until it was too late. Victor had tied a rag over his face, it wouldn't do to breathe in the acrid smoke. It would be rather embarrassing to pass out during his attempted escape. He waited by the stairwell until he heard their footsteps coming down. Then he lit the fuse and ran back towards his cell.
He pulled Tinkerbell towards his cell door. He pulled off his tie and pressed it to an imaginary wound on her stomach. It would be more realistic, less likely for the others to see through his ruse, if he actually stabbed her. His musings were cut short by the sounds of David and Robin yelling.
"Tinkerbell!"
"Down here!" Victor tried to look appropriately disgruntled. As though he wasn't quite sure what was happening. Perhaps he should have tried to appear more disheveled. He should have wounded himself a bit.
"Whale..coughcough…what the hell is…"
"I don't know. I was in my cell when all of a sudden smoke started pouring through the doors. Tinkerbell opened the door said we had to get out and then something attacked her. I couldn't see through the smoke."
"Where are the other guards."
"I…I don't know. I only saw her."
"I think some…"
Suddenly a wave of magic was blowing towards them, pushing the smoke away.
Regina.
Not long now.
"What the hell are you boys doing? Waiting for an invitation? Let's get the hell out of here."
Victor picked Tinkerbell up, letting David and Regina go in front while Robin trailed behind him.
Too quickly. He needed to…
He hesitated a moment. Regina and David continued back towards the stairwell. Robin stopped behind him.
"Doctor is everything…"
"Sorry, she just moved a bit in my arms. I just needed a second to readjust and…"
The countdown in his mind finally concluded. He and Robin were on the other side of the security door. David and Regina were farther ahead, almost out of sight. The unconscious security guard slung over David shoulders in a fireman's carry. Victor sidestepped quickly. Making it appear he was just trying to get a better grip on the injured fairy. Not trying to get behind the metal of the door.
The first bomb went off.
Even this far away from it, Victor and Robin were knocked off their feet. Robin quickly sprang up.
"Regina!"
Interesting.
Victor would file that information away for later. Victor stood slowly, he walked carefully towards the blast. David and the guard were on a heap by the wall. Victor bent down and checked them. Then took their guns and handcuffs. Both men were bleeding. But alive. Regina however, was a bit worse off. No doubt her magic protected her from what should have been a fatal blast at so close a range. Robin was hunched over Regina. He had abandoned his crossbow.
"Regina, wake up. Please, please my dear…" Victor quietly bent down and retrieved the crossbow. It was foolish to leave weapons in the hands of your enemy. Robin seemed to suddenly realize Victor was there.
"Doctor, you have to…" In the panic of it all, they seemed to have forgotten why it was Victor was down there in the first place. Perhaps they simply hadn't believed Rumpelstiltskin, perhaps they thought the doctor could fight his demons on his own. Maybe they honestly believed love could conquer any evil. How he had ever associated with anyone so naïve he couldn't understand. It was all so clear now.
They were weak.
But with a few minor surgical procedures, he could make them stronger.
It was for their own good.
Victor leveled the crossbow directly at Robin's chest. The man raised his hands slowly.
"Doctor…you can fight this. You can…"
"Fight what exactly? My true nature? I have been fighting that my entire life. Don't you see? I'm not fighting anymore, because the real me has won. That weak, pathetic creature I was before? I don't need him. I only…"
Robin moved swiftly, his hand grabbing the crossbow in one swift motion. It was Victor's own fault. A monologue? How cliché. He would have to work on keeping his narcissism in check. He could explain how great and masterful his plans were, after he had a more…receptive audience.
Vladimir had once tried to teach Victor how to fight. It had been an abysmal failure. Victor could never keep his sword steady. Could never go in for the kill when necessary. It was because he always knew exactly the damage he would inflict. Exactly which muscles would tear. Which bones would break. All the things he would no doubt have to go back and fix later.
Now, he had no such reservations.
When Robin grabbed the crossbow, Victor simply moved his hand up the man's arm and swiftly dislocated his elbow. An exceedingly painful injury, but not debilitating. So he swung the crossbow down and shattered the man's collarbone. This time Robin screamed in agony.
Victor stepped over the writhing man and walked towards the second bomb. He lit the fuse and headed towards the stairs.
"…doctor…don't…"
Victor turned and gave the thief a cursory glance.
"I would advise you to let the others know that I wish to be left alone. Anyone who attempts to come after me will not be treated as delicately as I have you. The only reason I am letting you live, is to deliver this message. I do not need their intrusions, I only seek solitude so that I may work on my experiments in peace. Do not attempt to interfere and there need not be any more unpleasantness."
Victor quickly moved up the stairs, then ducked into a nearby closet. He watched as Killian, Emma, Ruby, and Snow rush towards the stairs. The smoke would mess with Ruby's ability to sniff him out. As they were about to descend the staircase, the second bomb went off. Sending a new wave of smoke up the stairs.
Killian was yelling at Emma. So was Snow as a matter of fact. Trying to get her to listen. Instead, she simply created a force shield around herself and the others and started down the stairs. Typical heroes.
She didn't have the same control that Regina and Gold did. Didn't have their years of experience or endurance. Such a spell would surely drain her, tax her still relatively new found powers. She would be weakened. He waited a few more seconds, then headed out the front door. They would be looking for him down the alley near that rather large hole he had just blown in the wall. They wouldn't think to look for him walking out the front door, getting in his car, and just driving away.
He gambled on the fact that they wouldn't have let the entire town know about what had happened to him. They probably just told everyone he was recovering from the attack. None of the commoners would think twice about seeing him driving back to his apartment, picking up a few things, and then driving away again. Stopping to buy a few things at a few stores.
No. He had no idea what was going on at the hospital. Why, he would head right over there immediately. These people were so easily placated.
He drove to the Rabbit Hole then stole a truck parked outside. Combustion engine vehicles were so easy to hot wire. He had built one when he was seven.
He knew he had to find a place where he could be alone, a place where he could think and plan out his experiments. The best places were the ones he would be easily found. He had no doubts that they would continue to look for him, regardless of the warning he had given the thief. They would try to interfere. Try to stop him from completing his research. They were so simple in their thoughts. They would try to stand in the way of progress. How could they possibly understand what he had planned?
Well. He would just have to show them.